Last words of executed Texan: 'It does kind of burn'

Death row inmate Jose Luis Villegas Jr is seen in an undated photo released by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Huntsville, Texas. Villegas is scheduled to be executed at the Huntsville State Penitentiary April 16, 2014. (Reuters / Texas Department of Criminal Justice / Handout)

Texas executed its seventh inmate this year on Wednesday, after the prisoner’s attorneys failed to convince the Supreme Court he was mentally ill and should not be killed.

Convicted murderer Jose Villegas, 39, was originally sentenced in
2001 for stabbing and killing his ex-girlfriend, her son, and her
mother on Corpus Christi. Villegas was executed using a fresh
stock of pentobarbital, which was acquired by the Corrections
Department from an unnamed provider.

According to the Associated Press, when asked if he wanted to
make a statement before the lethal injection was administered,
Villegas said, "I would like to remind my children once again I
love them. Everything is OK. I love you all, and I love my
children. I am at peace."

When the pentobarbital was starting to take effect, Villegas
commented, "It does kind of burn. Goodbye." Roughly 11 minutes
passed before Villegas died. He reportedly “gasped several times,
then started to breathe quietly. Within less than a minute, all
movement had stopped.”

Lethal injection procedures across the United States have come
under heavy scrutiny as many state correctional departments have
found their supply of drugs dwindling. Most of the drugs’
manufacturers are European, and have stopped selling to states
intending to use them for executions.

As a result, some departments have turned to compounding
pharmacies to acquire the drugs, which are not regulated as
closely by the Food and Drug Administration as other pharmacies
are. Fearing the possibility that the drugs may not be produced
properly and could cause unnecessary pain, some inmates have sued
hoping to learn more about their source – but Texas has so far
denied releasing such information. Villegas was the third inmate
executed using drugs from a secret supplier.

As RT reported earlier in April, federal courts upheld the
state’s right to keep the sources secret. Texas stated that it
will not disclose its provider in order to protect it from
threats of violence.

According to the AP, the Supreme Court also recently upheld this
position.

In Villegas’ case, his attorneys argued that with an IQ of 59,
the Supreme Court should have ruled him ineligible for execution.
Texas officials, meanwhile, stated that tests undertaken prior to
Villegas receiving an execution date countered the allegation
that he had low IQ. They also questioned why, after 10 years, his
attorneys did not bring up his mental health until days before
the procedure was set to take place.

After witnessing the execution, prosecutor Mark Skurka told the
AP, "I was struck by the calm and peacefulness inside that room
as opposed to the utter terror the victims must have been in as
Jose Luis Villegas stabbed them.”

"He made no attempt to make peace with the family, apologize to
the family or show any remorse for taking the lives of three
people," he added. "The family expressed to me that they are glad
that this is finally over and that justice has finally been done,
even though it took a very long time in their minds for this to
happen."